ELIZABETH CITY, N.C. – On the last two days of the CIAA roundup hosted by Elizabeth City, the Winston-Salem State University softball team went 2-4 inside the South Sports Complex.
The Rams defeated Elizabeth City, and Lincoln, but fell to Bowie State, Virginia State, Virginia Union, and Bluefield. The Rams now sit at 3-16 (2-4 CIAA) on the season.
How it Happened – vs. Bowie State
BSU took an early 6-0 lead. The Rams added a run in the top of the seventh, with
Sierra Crocker on second and
Alea'ah Graham on first
BreAnna Steele singled RBI, advanced Graham to third, and Crocker scored (6-1).
BreAnna Steele pitched the entire game, faced 32 batters and had two strikeouts.
How it Happened – vs ECSU
The Rams got on the scoreboard first in the top of the second inning with one run. The Vikings came back with two runs in the bottom of the second inning to take a 2-1 lead. The Rams then added one run in the fifth inning, and four runs in the sixth after a double to center field by
Sierra Crocker scored the base runners, and a single from
Danasia Dupuy brought in Crocker. WSSU added three runs in the seventh inning to take a 9-2 lead.
Jyla Thomas pitched the entire game, earning the win and moving to 1-2 on the season, she faced 29 batters and had four strikeouts.
How it Happened – vs Virginia State
VSU took an early 2-1 lead at the top of the second. The Rams quickly added four runs after
Taisha Bratton filed out at CF and RBI for Gist, Ware, and Jackson to score. (2-5)
Then, WSSU scored a run in the third and a run in the fourth on three hits to take a (2-7) lead over VSU in the bottom of the fourth inning. The Trojans added two runs in the top of the fifth inning and the scoring didn't stop there as VSU added six runs in the top of the seventh, which secured the 10-7 victory.
Jyla Thomas pitched seven innings and had eight strikeouts. (1-3)
BreAnna Steele came in and gave up four runs.
How It Happened vs Virginia Union
Virginia Union took an early 3-1 lead after scoring three runs in the bottom of the first inning. Taishia Bratton hit a two RBI home run in the bottom of the third inning to tie the game for the Rams (3-3). VU added four runs on four hits to take a (7-3) lead in the bottom of the fourth inning. This ultimately gave VU the victory.
Alicia Carrington started the game pitched 0.2 innings,
Jyla Thomas pitched 2.1 innings had two strikeouts and
BreAnna Steele pitched 3.0 innings with one strikeout.
How It Happened vs Lincoln (Pa.)
The Rams jumped out to an early 1-0 lead after scoring one run in the top of the first inning.
Sierra Crocker singled to centerfield which advanced
Alea'ah Graham to second and RBI
Malia Simmons to give the Rams a 2-0 lead. Lincoln then earned one run to make the game 2-1 in the bottom of the fourth inning.
BreAnna Steele pitched 4.0 innings and
Jyla Thomas pitched three innings to earn the save, she also threw five strikeouts.
How It Happened vs Bluefield
The Rams took an early 3-0 lead after scoring three runs in the top of the first inning. Bluefield then scored five runs in the bottom of the first. Then, in the bottom of the second Bluefield scored three runs. WSSU followed up with a run of their own in the third after
Jyla Thomas reached third base off a wild pitch and then
Sierra Crocker singled into centerfield which led to Thomas scoring. Bluefield also scored a run due to a Coffman home run in the bottom of the third inning with Bluefield leading (9-4). In the fourth, the Rams scored two runs, and Bluefield scored a run, (10-6). WSSU then goes on to score five runs over the next three innings to tie the game at 11 at the end of regulation. In extra innings, Bluefield earned a late run in the 8th inning by a fielder's choice RBI to win the game 12-11.
Sierra Crocker (0-3) started the game, then
BreAnna Steele pitched 1.2 innings and
Jyla Thomas pitched 5.1 innings and had 10 strikeouts.
WSSU will be back in action on March 30th at Barton College in Wilson, North Carolina. The doubleheader will begin at noon.
Winston-Salem State University is back in action on Friday, April 5th hosting Fayetteville State University at Twin Cities Ballpark for a doubleheader. The first pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m.